Fridge and freezer

Did you realise that two thirds of all food poisoning originates from your fridge or freezer’s walls? “Most bacteria only ‘hibernate’ at temperatures below freezing, but they don’t die,” explains Roxanna. She suggests sorting all your food into insulated bags when stocking your freezer as a precautionary measure. To clean it, turn it off, remove bottom shelf and place some towels inside to soak up the water, close the door and let it defrost overnight. You can sterilise the freezer with a cloth soaked in vinegar cleaner and so freed from the final dormant bacteria. Don’t forget to clean the shelves too.”[Photo: Getty]

Your bedsheets and 11 other things you should be washing more often (especially if you don't want to get ill!)

When it comes to washing things like our bedsheets, we have all the good intentions. But somehow, the Stranger Things box set, seems to get in the way, and before you know it, changing the bed has slipped right to the bottom of the to-do list. Oops.

But could our cleanliness (or lack of) be having a knock on effect of our health?

According to some studies it could because not keeping on top of our bed sheet laundry means we’re creating a breeding ground for harmful microbes that can totally make us ill.

Philip Tierno, from New York University, told Business Insider that we need to be washing our sheets every week if we want to avoid some seriously icky effects on our health.

According to the microbiologist, microscopic life can build up over time within our bed clothes and, eventually, make people sick.

In fact, just two weeks of, er, build-up is enough to leave you with a scratchy throat, especially if you suffer with allergies.

In other gross news of the day, your unwashed bedding could also be making you sneeze and sniffle more as the microbes are near your face, meaning you’re likely to breathe them in. Bleugh!

And your bed sheets aren’t the only household item we should be washing more often than we do. We spoke to cleaning experts Helpling.co.uk, the UK’s leading online platform for booking a cleaner, to reveal some everyday items you need to be washing right now. Like, now, now!